Man, when I feel like an idiot I go out of my way to -not- find the bystanders in my own misadventure to point fingers at. That would be terribly irresponsible of me to make out like i was a victim of my own choices.

You know I bet cops do treat big guys differently than other folk. Regardless of race. They are able to cause more damage if they decide too. Like how you are probably more wary of a pitbull vs a poodle.

Does she actually say if you are certain size then you should be considered armed regardless of whether or not you are carrying a firearm?

OTOH, it is odd to see the term "unarmed" constantly being used as if it is a synonym for "harmless." Roughly 6 percent of homicides each year in the United States are committed by individuals who are "unarmed" and do not use a weapon other than their fists, feet, etc.

Even if a person's size could be construed as a weapon, that doesn't justify lethal force. What happened to tasers? What happened to pepper spray, batons, beanbag rounds, etc.? Why go immediately for the kill?

Not that I'm advocating any of those. To me, Brown's death is pretty clearly on the spectrum between manslaughter and murder. But generally speaking, it seems like less-than-lethal-but-still-violent methods are fading away.

In Durham a man was recently killed by police in an obvious suicide-by-cop situation. They were blocks from the police station and the standoff lasted more than an hour before one of the police killed him. It would have been a perfect occasion for a bean bag round. And a bean bag round would have reduced the danger posed by gunfire in downtown Durham.